City of Splendors

Episode XI Recap

Body Trail

29

JUN/17

Rest would come at a price for our adventurers. After fending off a trio of intruders in Gyudd’s home, Aystra soon discovered that their travelling companion and new friend had been murdered in cold blood in his own bed. In the front room, Havard, Laire, and Vyurek managed to detain one of the men, a devious Drow rogue who was more interested in taunting his would-be captors than dispensing any useful information. Despite their aggressive interrogation techniques, he would only laugh defiantly, even when pressed with torture.

Reeling from the discovery of her friend’s death, Aystra was livid to find what her companions had done in attempting to extract information from their foe. But they had little time for dispute — it soon became apparent that the knife driven through Gyudd’s heart was no ordinary blade when a black rot engulfed his chest. In haste, the party bound his body, taking the Melairkyn crown with them and prepared to return to the surface.
Aystra negotiated with a local barkeep for passage through one of Skullport’s many hidden tunnels connecting to Waterdeep above. As they hurried through the ancient sewage line, Gyudd’s corpse deteriorated at an impossibly quick rate, showing clearer signs of foul play in his murder.

Finally, the party reached the mercy of daylight once more after weeks of surviving underground. No sooner did they take their first breath of fresh air than did they run into an old friend — Oyin, the gregarious ogre courier of Goolstoc’s Courier service. He happily carted the group to the Temple of the Sun, where they hoped to enlist the healing abilities of the temple’s great clerics. But even the skilled healer Quilynn Dryadson could do little, as the poison used proved too powerful even for her skilled hands.

Still, the nature of Gyudd’s death and decay led to a disturbing revelation: the poison employed by the Drow assassins is getting more powerful, which can only mean that the dark elves have been gaining increased supplies through allies. Whether this meant imminent threat remained uncertain, but Quilynn assured the group she would inform the proper powers of this knowledge.

With their great quest behind them, the group finally found time to rest and restock. Over the coming days, each party member was able to carry out his or her personal duties. But for Havard, these were no mundane tasks; at the Deneir Cloister, he would find a message waiting for him bearing ill news of a former companion. According to Abbot Arkosian of the Cormyr order of Deneir, Brother Barjin had gone missing in the Waterdeep area, suspected kidnapped. Their only lead on the matter would be Dorn, the roguish sellsword of the Docks Ward. Dorn suggested that Brother Barjin may have been travelling with a party under his brother’s employ, all of whom went missing a fortnight prior. The word of suspected Drow involvement was all the motivation the party needed to once again venture underground and seek out the Adventurer’s Camp in hopes of locating the missing party, and Havard’s compatriot.